by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
There may not be a new concessionaire at Alltel Stadium this football season, but the revenue generated won’t be split among the Jacksonville Jaguars and the City any more.
Earlier this month, the Jaguars informed Volume Services, Inc. (which does business as Centerplate) that they do not intend to renew the contract with Volume that expires May 31. Instead, the team will issue Request For Proposals in early March. Bill Prescott, the team’s senior vice president of stadium operations and chief financial officer, said he expects companies from all over the country to respond to the proposals. However, don’t expect a local company to get the job.
“I do not know of a local company that could handle the magnitude of the general concessions on game day,” said Prescott.
Concessions were one of the sticking points in the recent negotiations between the team and the City regarding the new lease on Alltel Stadium. Since the team started play in 1995, the Jaguars and the City split concession profits from non-City events. Under the new agreement, the team gets 100 percent of the revenues generated by concessions. Prescott said the process in selecting a new concessionaire will be similar to the process the City uses when issuing an RFP except the matter will be resolved rather quickly.
“We need to make a final decision by May 1,” said Prescott, adding the new concession agreement will probably be for 7-10 years.
Being a public entity, the Jaguars technically don’t have to issue an RFP, but are doing so in a effort to assure they get the best deal possible. The bids are not public information and, unlike the City RFP process, the evaluation and selection process is a closed matter.
“It will not be as formal a process if the City was a party to the agreement,” explained Prescott. “We will get historical info on the participants and the parameters of the financial proposal. Then, we will meet with each potential candidate.”
Prescott said he had no idea how many companies would submit bids, but he did expect Centerplate to be one of the bidders. By taking over the concessions at the stadium, the Jaguars will make money during non-football events.
“We will have the ability to utilize the clubs (East, West and Bud Zone in the south end zone) on non-game days for revenue-producing activities,” said Prescott, adding that new concessionaires have been lined up for the 2006-07 season. He also said concession prices will remain consistent with last year and they will be consistent, whether Alltel is used for a football game or some other event.